


Green With Envy

by Sweety_Bird



Category: The Avengers (2012)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-02
Updated: 2013-02-02
Packaged: 2017-11-27 20:54:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,935
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/666388
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sweety_Bird/pseuds/Sweety_Bird
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I got prompted for jealous!Steve. This happened.</p>
    </blockquote>





	Green With Envy

**Author's Note:**

> I got prompted for jealous!Steve. This happened.

"Tony?" Steve stuck his head in the doorway, peering into the kitchen. It was empty, devoid of the man he was looking for. Natasha and Clint must have left for the day as well, because they were usually in the kitchen in the morning. Frowning slightly, the super-soldier turned around and headed for the stairs.

It was a quiet Thursday morning, and the house lacked its usual chaos and noise. Not that Steve was complaining- it was just a bit strange. He'd slept in just a little later than usual that morning, and much to his surprise, Tony was no longer slumbering next to him when he awoke. Since when did the brunette ever get up earlier than Steve, let alone early at all? 

As he started down the stairs, his shoes making muffled noises on the linoleum, the sounds of hushed voices reached his ears. It made sense that Tony would be in the lab, but who was with him? No one but Steve could stand to watch him work, simply because his habits were found annoying and he almost never spoke. 

Steve reached the foot of the stairs and peered through the glass, understanding filtering through him as he saw Bruce. Why hadn't he figured that out? Typing the code into the security panel, the Captain pulled open the door and entered silently. Neither men seemed to hear or notice, completely engrossed in their work. 

"-but without a way to stabilize the sodium nitrate, it'll just blow up," Tony was saying, laying a hand on a bunch of papers scattered across the lab table. Bruce had his glasses perched on the end of his nose, his head bent in order to see the formulas better as he tried to decipher the engineer's notes. "And I thought my shorthand was chicken scratch," he mused, glancing over in time to see the other man smirk. 

Feeling slightly lost and not understanding a word that was being said, Steve cleared his throat. Tony glanced up and gave a small wave, clearly distracted by whatever he was discussing with Bruce. "You know, a magnesium cation might balance out the compound," the doctor said, removing his glasses and tapping them emphatically on the notes. "Good morning," Steve tried, starting to feel a bit left out. Tony glanced at him again, nodding in acknowledgement before looking back at the notes and narrowing his eyes. 

"Yeah, g'morning. I think you might be right Bruce- why didnt I think of that?" Tony mused, snatching a pencil off the desk and scribbling a quick note down. Then he paused to look over his work, tapping his chin thoughtfully with the eraser. Neither of them seemed to be paying any attention to Steve, who scuffed the floor awkwardly with his shoe. The only reason he was getting left out was because he didn't understand any of this science stuff. Confusion flickered across his face- what was this feeling? It was ugly and cold, knotting in his stomach and wrapping cold tendrils around his heart. However, he couldn't put a name to the feeling- that is, until Tony clapped Bruce on the shoulder and gave him one of his genuine smiles. _Jealousy_. 

It wasn't fair that Tony spent this kind of time with Bruce, that he and the other scientist got close just because they spoke a different language together, the language of science. It made Steve's chest hurt to watch them, an unnatural anger flickering into a small flame within him. Tony was _his_ , not Bruce's. Realizing he was scowling, the Captain kept his expression carefully blank and attempted to force down the unpleasant jealousy before it could rear its ugly head once more. 

"You know, I could get some of your equipment in here. We make a pretty good team big guy," Tony offered, his words like a blow to the blonde man behind them. He had never offered Steve anything, who would come down and watch him work for hours, not to mention make sure he ate and showered. Bruce smiled faintly and shook his head, lifting his gaze from their work to look at him. "I stopped believing in a cure a long time ago. I'd much rather just help out with your projects," he replied, tugging the edge of his sleeve out of habit; it was a nervous twitch. Tony's next words were lost on Steve, who had quickly turned tail and fled to avoid any more heartache. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dinner was an oddly silent affair. With their resident S.H.I.E.L.D. agents away on a mission, only Bruce, Tony, and Steve were present. It was usually a casual type thing; they would split a couple boxes of pizza and then go their separate ways for the evening. Tonight however, it was strangely silent. There was no chatting or joking like usual, the tension in the air thick and weighing down on all of their shoulders. The generally cheerful Captain never said a word, his gaze averted the entire time as he ate. The silence made Bruce nervous, because it was suffocating and threatening. He would furtively glance around, as though expecting someone to jump at them, and every now and then flinch slightly as a shadow shifted. Tony didn't know what to make of all of this, and simply studied Steve's face while he ate. Something was wrong with his boyfriend, but he wasn't sure what. All he knew was that something was definitely bothering him. 

"Well, this is awkward. I'll be in my room meditating if you need me- please don't need me," Bruce finally sighed, breaking the silence and startling Tony. The billionaire watched him push in his chair and place his dishes in the sink, his gaze still trailing after him until he rounded a corner and disappeared from sight. What the hell was going on? 

He turned back in time to see Steve rising as well, his gaze downcast as he discarded his dishes and began walking in the opposite direction down the hall. Not bothering with his plate, Tony quickly got up and hurried after him, stunned by his sour attitude. He finally caught up and tapped the Captain's shoulder, a little breathless. "Steve, what-" Without warning Tony found himself pressed up against the wall, Steve's lips against his fiercely in a deep kiss. It nearly turned the billionaire to jelly, melting under the sudden passion, but something wasn't right. For a moment he was lost in it, Steve firmly pressed up against him and licking the roof of his mouth tantilizingly. Then the super-soldier's earlier behavior came to mind, and with both hands on Steve's chest, he forced him back and pulled away. 

"Steve," he gasped, greedily sucking in air. That had been quite the kiss- he couldn't recall the timid man ever having kissed him with such gusto. Tony was excruciatingly aware of their proximity, seeing as he was still pressed firmly up against the wall with an apparently in-the-mood super-soldier holding him there. "What's gotten into you?" He managed when he had regained some stamina. In the dimly lit hall, he could see Steve's brow furrowing as he tried and failed to mask his feelings. "Nothing. I just.. Wanted to kiss you," he said quietly, the guilt at the lie written all over his face. It was nowhere near the truth, or at least the whole truth.

Realizing just how delicate a situation this was, Tony forced himself to be sensitive and not crack a joke. "Steve," he said softly, putting a hand on his shoulder. "What's wrong?" Those two little words destroyed the Captain's will, breaking open his façade and crumbling whatever lie he had been preparing. "Earlier today.. I walked into the lab and I saw you talking with Bruce. You were getting along so well, and you just seemed so happy when you were with him and didn't even notice I was there, and I just felt like maybe you didn't love me anymore because you can talk to Bruce about science, but you can't talk to me about it because I'm not smart that way, so he would seem like an obvious choice over me," Steve rushed, words tumbling out of his mouth. He barely paused to take a breath, the flow of emotions unstoppable. 

Tony was stunned, listening in silence as Steve poured his heart out. He distinctly remembered that he had stopped by the lab this morning, but hadn't realized how strongly the Captain felt. Had he really seemed that attached to Bruce? Now that he thought about it, to an outsider it would've looked like Tony had been flirting with the scientist and bonding. He liked Bruce, but not in the way Steve was thinking. And the look on his face; it just broke his heart to see the sadness in those blue eyes, full of betrayal and hurt. If he'd known that Steve was watching, he wouldn't have behaved that way. 

"Steve babe, I don't like Bruce. Not that way," Tony said softly, tilting the man's chin back up from where it had been while he examined his shoes. There was a spark of hope in his eyes, but his mouth spit out a question before his brain could stop it. "I saw how you were looking at him. You said you made a good team," Steve whispered, feeling that familiar jealousy stir within him. Tony shook his head quickly, his gaze pleading as he stared at the Captain. "Yeah, as lab partners! Bruce has a sort of girlfriend anyway. Look, Steve, I'm only interested in one person, and he's currently suffocating me against the wall right now," he assured him, shifting his weight slightly. Seeming to notice for the first time how tightly he had Tony pinned against the wall, Steve turned a distinct shade of pink and took a step back so the other man could breathe.

"I.. I'm sorry, I just.. I guess I got jealous," Steve said quietly, feeling slightly ashamed. How could he have thought Tony would love anyone else? The billionaire hadn't looked at a single girl the way he looked at Steve in months. Tony just chuckled and slipped his arms around Steve's waist, grinning up at him. "What, the honorable Captain America was jealous? I'm shocked," he joked, eliciting an embarrassed smile from said Captain America. "Shut up," he grumbled, though he was still smiling. 

"I'm serious Cap, this is breaking news. If we hurry, we can make the morning edition of the Wallstreet Journal-" He was promptly cut off as Steve leaned down to kiss him, effectively silencing Tony. It wasn't as heated and vivid as the kiss a few moments ago, but it was sweet and meaningful. He was asking for forgiveness- and it was clear he had gotten it when the billionaire gently tugged at his lower lip affectionately. 

When they finally broke apart, they were both feeling pleasantly light-headed. "I think I know what the problem is," Steve murmured into Tony's ear, his breath warm. "I need to stake a claim to you," he went on; Tony's eyebrows rose slightly as he caught on. "And Bruce will know how? I'm all for the kinks, but I'm not letting someone watch. Even I have standards," he pointed out, wondering just what the Captain was thinking. He was never this randy. Steve merely grinned and tugged him towards their room. "No need. He'll hear of it somehow," he said mischeviously, all but dumping Tony on the bed as he clicked the door shut behind them. Bruce had trouble meditating that night.


End file.
